2017-2018 Georgia Legislative Session

Latest Update: May 09, 2018 – The Georgia Legislature completed its 2017-2018 session at midnight on March 29, 2018. The last day for the governor to sign or veto passed bills was May 08, 2018.

The 2017-2018 Georgia Legislative Session kicks off its first session on January 9, 2017. It re-convenes on January 8, 2018 for session two. We will be following bills related to local government, land use, transportation, planning, and environmental issues. Each week we will add any relevant new bills and update the status of existing bills we are tracking. This is not an extensive list of relevant bills. We attempt to track bills that are not well-covered by major news outlets as the major bills pertaining to transportation, land use, and the environment. The title and sponsor of each bill will be listed, as well as links to any relevant SustainAtlanta articles and a brief synopsis and opinion of the bill.

Throughout the session we will be posting articles that analyze and debate some of the more interesting and consequential issues contained in the proposed bills. Please check back each week for updates.

Bills must be passed by both houses of the Georgia Assembly (Senate and House of Representatives) in order to go to the Governor for final consideration. The governor can sign the bill, veto the bill, or do nothing. If the governor does nothing then the bill automatically becomes law. Crossover Day for the first session (March 3, 2017) is the final day for bills to be passed in their respective house so that they can move into debate in the opposite house. Those bills that failed to pass in their respective house by Crossover Day are marked as Dead and no longer have the opportunity to be by passed by the full Georgia Legislature and considered by the governor. Those marked as Passed have either been signed by the governor or sent to the governor with no action taken.

However, those bills can be re-considered when the legislature re-convenes in January of 2018. Once the legislature re-convenes in 2018 the Dead label will be removed from all bills. Crossover Day for session two is February 28, 2018. Any bill that has not crossed over by this day will be marked Dead. Bills that crossed over have until midnight on March 29, 2018 to pass both the House and Senate. Those that pass are sent to the governor for consideration. And that will be it for the 2017-2018 session. Any bill that has not passed will have to be reintroduced during the 2019 legislative session.

In 1981 the Georgia Legislature passed O.C.G.A. §46-9-271, which created the Georgia Rail Passenger Authority and gave the Authority the power to construct, finance, develop, and operate rail passenger service in Georgia. HB-6 amends the law to include “High-Speed Rail” in all relevant sections.

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HB-60: Distillers to Sell Beverages on Premises/SB-85: Sale of Beer at Breweries*Passed*

Currently breweries and distilleries are prohibited from selling their beverages on premises. They can, however, offer tours, which allows the consumption of their product on the premises, but they are not allowed to sell packaged products. HB-60 would allow up to 10% of a distillery’s yearly sales to come from on-premises sales of packaged beverages. This would allow distilleries to sell some of their own packaged alcoholic beverages directly to consumers without going through a distributor. The alcoholic distribution system in Georgia is a relic of the post-prohibition period and has drawn sharp criticism from consumers and producers in recent years as the number of breweries and distilleries has skyrocketed throughout the state.

Similarly, SB-85 would allow breweries to sell their beer directly to consumers for on and off-premises consumption without the absurd requirements that tours be offered. Breweries would be allowed to sell up to 3,000 barrels a year for on-premises and off-premises consumption with off-premises consumption capped at 288 ounces per consumer per day.

Gerrymandering should be a major concern for all Americans. Every ten years congressional districts are reapportioned based on the latest Census data available so as to establish districts that are roughly equal in population. Since the governor and legislature are responsible for doing this in most states the issue is highly politicized. Districts can be drawn so as to ensure an easy win for a particular party and, sure enough, this is exactly what is done. If Republicans are in charge then they simply draw the districts in such a way as to ensure a comfortable Republican win in as many districts as possible. While Republicans have been responsible for doing this as of late, Democrats have done the exact same thing when they have been in charge. This results in scenarios where one party will get hundreds of thousands of more votes than the opposing party, but lose congressional seats in an election.

The US Supreme Court has largely stayed out of the debate calling it a “political issue” that isn’t appropriate for judicial interpretation. So as long as there isn’t some clear motivation to draw the districts based on race, and not on political affiliation, then courts will largely allow politicians to play politics. The US Supreme Court did, however, recently uphold Arizona’s policy of requiring an independent, bi-partisan commission to reapportion congressional districts. This is Georgia’s attempt at establishing a similar system for reapportionment. If the resolution is passed by the Georgia Legislature then it will go to the voters in the form of a referendum to amend the Georgia Constitution.

The Senate and House have both come up with plans for finding funding solutions for transit throughout the state. The two bills are similar, though the House’s version would require the commission to report its finding by the end of the year, while the SB-6 would require a report in 2018-2019.

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HB-194: Zoning Decisions Shall Consider Local Schools **Dead**

The US Constitution allows local governments to zone for the health, safety, welfare, and morals of the community. Under OCGA §36-66-5, local governments are to provide general policies and procedures for how they are to balance these interests when exercising their zoning authority. HB-194 would require local governments to consider the impact a zoning change may have on the local schools, including and potential overcrowding.

This bill allows Depatment of Corrections personnel and those in their custody to enter private property when a state of emergency or state of disaster has been declared by the Governor. A private property owner, however, shall have the authority to revoke this right.

This bill would require 75% of all tax revenue collected from the sale of outdoor recreation equipment to go to the Georgia Outdoor Stewardship Trust Fund. The funds would then be given as grant money to local governments for conservation and restoration purposes. If passed, a statewide referendum would be held in November for voters to approve the allocation of funds.

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HB-386/SB-261: Dekalb Sales Tax Increase to Pay for Transit **Dead**

HB-386 Sponsors: Bill Mitchell, 88th; Howard Mosby, 83rd

HB-386 Status: House Second Readers (February 17, 2017)

SB-261 Sponsors: Gloria Butler, 55th; Steve Henson, 41st

SB-261 Status: Senate Read and Referred (February 17, 2017)

The Georgia Legislature must give local governments the authority to increase taxes. The process involves the legislature approving a bill that allows local governments to hold referenda where voters would approve or disapprove of the tax increase. Citizens of Atlanta and Fulton County recently voted to increase their sales tax to pay for more public transit. HB-386 and SB-261 allow for residents of Dekalb County to approve a similar sales tax increase for transit expansion in the county.

Not this year Dekalb – both bills failed to proceed.

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HB-434: Allow Cities to Condemn Property and Sell to Private Party *Passed*

This bill would allow local governments, in certain circumstances, to condemn blighted property and sell the property to private developers. Georgia laws passed in the wake of a 2005 landmark Supreme Court case place severe restrictions on the ability for local governments to do such a thing, requiring them to, instead, use condemned property for purely public purposes.

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HB-481: State Preemption of Drone Laws*Passed*

Sponsors: Kevin Tanner, 9th; Rick Golick, 40th; Ed Rynder, 142nd

Status: Passed House and Senate. Signed by Governor (May 09, 2017)

Drones are the new millenials. For months and years now all we’ve heard about is drones and how they’re going to save the world. Well the Georgia Legislature believes that the state, and not local governments, should have the ability to regulate drones. This seems like wise policy as drones will undoubtedly be crossing city and county lines on a regular basis, so statewide regulatory regime makes sense. HB-481 officially declares the regulation of drones to be in the State of Georgia’s realm and voids most local laws pertaining to drones created after April 1, 2017. The bill does allow local government to pass laws that conform to FAA requirements or that prohibit or provide for the launching or landing of drones on public property, but not for commercial purposes.

Local governments charge stormwater fees as a means of reimbursing the local government for having to deal with stormwater runoff. Properties that have a greater impervious surface area are generally charged a higher fee since water runs off of those properties at a much greater rate. SB-116 and HB-512 would prohibit local governments from charging any fee for any property that is certified as water-neutral under the Georgia Stormwater Management Manual.

It’s unclear whether allowing property owners to not be charged a stormwater fee at all in exchange for setting up a system that satisfies a Stormwater Management best practices for a 25 year flood event over a 24 hour period is really a good idea. Just because your property meets the requirements for a 25 year event doesn’t necessarily mean that it isn’t contributing to normal stormwater runoff that is seen on a day-to-day basis, which is the basis for the stormwater fee.

Everyone in America understands that the color purple means Do Not Enter. This is basic information that we’re all taught from an early age. So it makes sense that the Georgia Legislature wants to amend the criminal trespass statute so as to make it a criminal trespass when one knowingly, and without permission, enters the land of another when the property owner has marked their property with little purple lines. The stipulations in SB-159 for the purple lines are that they must be more than 8 inches in length and 1 inch in width, be between 3-5 feet from the ground, and placed in areas that are readily visible to approaching people, but that are no more than 100 feet apart for forested land or 1,000 feet apart for unforested land.

The good news is that this bill would seemingly eliminate the need for “No Trespassing” or “Keep Out Private Property” signs, but the bad news is that it replaces those signs with indiscernible information to the average person. While the current law requires one to know that they are entering the land of another, this bill reduces the standard by effectively claiming that people “know” they have entered the land of another if purple lines are present. It is unclear, though, whether one satisfies the knowledge element of the crime when one knowingly enters land that has been painted with purple lines or if one must know they are entering land and know that purple paint is present.

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SB-191: Petroleum Pipelines **Dead**

Sponsors: Rick Jeffares, 117th; Jack Hill, 4th; Jesse Stone, 23rd

Status: Passed. House Withdrawn, Recommitted (March 30, 2017)

Petroleum pipelines can once again be constructed in Georgia. SB-191 allows pipeline companies to use eminent domain to construct pipelines once they receive authority from the Georgia Environmental Finance Authority and from the Environmental Protection Division of the Georgia Department of Natural Resources. The bill prohibits pipelines from being constructed in the Georgia coastal management zone.

While the US Supreme Court ruled in 2015 that same-sex couples have a constitutional right to marriage, there is little constitutional protection for sexual orientation in other aspects of life under current jurisprudence. This could change with future Supreme Court decisions, though the federal government is highly unlikely to create statutory protections given its current political makeup. SB-119 would extend housing discrimination protection beyond what is in the federal Fair Housing Act to also include protections for sexual orientation.

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HB-650: Local Control Over Monuments **Dead**

Sponsored by: Mary Margaret Oliver, 82nd

Status: House Second Readers (January 22, 2018)

Under OCGA 50-3-1, the state prohibits local governments from relocating monuments dedicated to past or present military personnel of the United States or the Confederate States of America. This bill would allow local governments to move or conceal those monuments that are on public property owned by the local government. This bill only relates to monuments dedicated to military personnel. Interestingly, this bill does not seek to amend OCGA 50-3-1(c), which prohibits the moving or concealing of the memorial to the “heroes of the Confederate States of America” on the face of Stone Mountain.

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SB-295: Regulation of Recreational Marijuana **Dead**

Sponsored by: Curt Thompson, 5th

Status: Senate Read and Referred (March 22, 2017)

As other red and blue states jump on board with the legalization of recreational marijuana, Georgia likely will remain on the sidelines. Though it should be pointed out that Vermont is the only state to have legalized marijuana through the legislative process as opposed to voters approving of legalization through referendum. Unlike in many western states, the Georgia Legislature must allow residents to directly vote on legislation through referenda.

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HB-645: Medical Marijuana Dispensaries **Dead**

Sponsored by: Allen Peake (141st)

Status: House Second Readers (January 08, 2018)

The Georgia Legislature approved passed medical marijuana legislation last year, but barred the production and selling of medical marijuana in Georgia. This bill would setup a regulatory scheme to both produce and dispense medical marijuana.

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SB-309: Reduce Voting Time in Large Cities**Dead**/SB-363: Reduce Voting Time in Large Cities**Dead**

Current Georgia law requires polls to be open from 7am to 7pm on election days. However, in cities with populations over 300,000 the polls must stay open until 8pm. The only city in Georgia with a population over 300,000 is Atlanta, which is an overwhelmingly Democratic city. The bill also provides for primaries ahead of special elections. The likely rationale for this is to avoid another 2017 6th Congressional District Special Election situation where a Democratic almost wins a Congressional race because Republican votes are spread across several candidates.

SB-363 is a competing bill that would also reduce voting time in Atlanta to 7pm. SB-363, though, does not include the addition of primaries before special elections.

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SB-340: Reduce Global Temperatures **Dead**

This bill would require the Georgia Environmental Protection Division to craft rules to combat climate change. Specifically the rules must be tailored to reducing the global temperature to one and half degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels. In addition to having zero chance of getting out of committee due to political reasons, it’s not the most well-crafted piece of legislation. The bill is too general and doesn’t instruct the EPD to do anything specifically; but, again, this bill is more of a statement and less of serious legislative proposal.

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SB-320: Voter Registration in Schools **Dead**

Sponsored by: Steve Henson, 41st

Status: Senate Read and Referred (January 11, 2018)

This bill designates public elementary and secondary schools as voter registration sites. Since schools often serve as community centers in many neighborhoods, this idea makes sense. How else do you register to vote other than when you get or renew your drivers license? How do you register when you don’t have a car? It’s likely that very few people know of any other means.

This is the latest effort by members of the Legislature to implement mass transit throughout the Atlanta region. SB-386 allows each county to hold a referendum to increase the sales and use tax to pay for regional transit projects. A regional commission, called “ATL Commission”, would create a regional transit plan consisting of various transit projects throughout the metro area with all of the projects being operated by MARTA. After a county decides to hold a referendum, the ATL Commission would provide a list of projects to be funded by the tax. The ATL Commission would be made up of the Governor, the department of transportation commission, the CEO of MARTA, and officials from Atlanta, Dekalb, Clayton, and Fulton. Any county that approves of the sales and use tax increase would gain representation on the Commission.

This bill does not have any Democratic co-sponsors and similar bill is in the works in the House.

This bill is the House’s bi-partisan version of SB-386, above. This bill also wants to call our regional transportation system “The ATL”. Beyond that it is essentially the same as the Senate’s version, though there is one major exception. While SB-386 allows counties to join the regional transportation system known as The ATL, HB-930 allows part of Cobb County to join The ATL. This is clearly a compromise to allow southern and eastern portions of Cobb County to enter the system while “protecting” the other rest of Cobb County. The most significant holdup in getting solid regional transportation legislation has been pushback from politicians in the more highly conservative parts of Fulton, Cobb, and Gwinnett Counties. Those politicians, though, represent a small portion of the residents in those three counties.

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HB-954: Protect Tenants Against Retaliation by Landlord **Dead**

HB-954 prevents a landlord from raising rent, disconnecting services, or evicting a tenant because a tenant took certain actions. Those actions include exercising a right under the lease, requesting repairs, reporting building issues to government authorities, and joining a tenant rights organizations. The landlord is not liable under the bill if they can prove that they took the actions listed above against the tenant, not because of the tenant’s actions above, but because of other legal reasons (tenant was delinquent in payments, rental hike was part of a normal pattern of rent increases, etc).

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HB-834: Allows Victims of Family Violence to Terminate Leases *Passed*

Finally some good tenant-related law in Georgia. This bill allows victims of family violence to terminate their leases without penalty. This is a critical protection since without it, victims have to choose between staying in a violent situation and suffering a major financial loss. Or worse, staying in a violent situation because they simply cannot afford to leave.